Kuragi Machi
Kuragi Machi is the treasurer of the student council, with Kimi and Naohito as the secretaries. While Yuki is the president, and Kakeru is the vice president. In adulthood she marries Yuki and has a son with him. Background Machi Kuragi was born to her father's legal wife, while Kakeru was the older child but born illegitimately to their father's former partner. Since their father is very wealthy, their mothers constantly argued over whose child would become the heir to the family fortune. Machi was forced into an inheritance rivalry against Kakeru by her mother since a young age, and thus didn't have time for anything else. Machi was always pressed by her mother to have a perfect personality and a perfect academic's record, because she was convinced that her father would reject her otherwise. She would also be punished for anything short of perfection. Machi described these years as feelings like she was under siege and suffocating. Even so, she was desperate to live up to her mother's expectations, but even when she became "perfect", Machi never earned a pat on the back from her mother at all. The bitter inheritance rivalry ended when Kakeru and his mother withdrew from the competition, and when Machi's mother had bore a son. Machi's mother was pleased to finally have a boy, who she could name the heir. Additionally, she told her friend that she was disappointed in Machi, since she was very boring, didn't stand out, and that excelling in school couldn't save her plain personality. When Machi argued that she was simply trying to live up to her mother's expectations and has always did what she asked of her, her mother was even further disappointed in Machi, then she deemed that she had raised Machi in the wrong way, and continued to treat her coldly. This had made Machi completely lost, because she didn't know what to do besides being perfect and to please her mother. One day, Machi saw her younger brother laying on the ground and, thinking that he might be cold, was covering him with a blanket. Her mother entered the room and convicted Machi of attempting to kill him, an accusation she did not contest even though it is false. Her parents, by believing she resents her younger brother and is a danger to him, quickly threw her out of the house. Machi had no choice but to consent to this, and her parents claimed they did it for Machi, because they thought that it would be more "stress-free" and "better" for her to live apart from her family. She has since lived alone in an apartment. This left Machi heartbroken, leaving her to become quiet, removed from society, and despising anything she considered "perfect". While Kakeru was able to recover, Machi still suffered from the after-effects of it. Personality She is seen as being very quiet, and has a destructive tendency. She spends many hours each and every day spinning around and around non stop. This destructive tendency came from her frustration at having to be completely perfect for her mother's sake, then being mocked and put down on by the very same person she worked so hard for. Her hatred of tidiness is reflected by her apartment. It's so messy that you can actually find a bra lying around on the floor. Unlike most girls at high school, she does not see Yuki as a prince, but as just another boy, even seeing him as being lonely. Her different attitude and troubled behavior catches Yuki's eye, and he makes multiple attempts at befriending her. Like the youngest Sohmas, Machi likes the fictional anime Mogeta, and treasures two character figurines that Yuki gives her. Machi is able to confess to Yuki her love to him when Tohru is still in the hospital. Machi was initially depicted as a very quiet, nearly emotionless girl. Machi is quite agreeable, as she often does what she is told to do. She talks very monotone and rarely speaks up for her own wishes. She also has great difficulty expressing herself, which sometimes results in her older half brother Kakeru making decisions for her. She has little desire to put in any effort into meaningless disciplines or activities, and only does what she is required to do. For this reason, she is often dragged around by fellow student-council member Kimi Toudou and Kakeru. Machi has a high degree of anxiety and has an occasional destructive behavior, such as wrecking the student council room, breaking a new box of chalk, and walking around in circles dozens of times in clean, unblemished snow. She hates perfection of all forms, and often ends up destroying things that are considered too tidy. Her hatred of tidiness is also reflected by her apartment; as she never bothers to throw out the trashbags in her room or clean up her clothes. This destructive tendency came from her frustration at having to be completely perfect for her mother's sake, then being brushed aside and put down by the very person she worked so hard for. Machi is also a lone wolf who is rather isolated; as friendships do not come easily to her. She is also very straightforward with her words and has little censor in what she says. Machi is incredibly perceptive, as she picks up on things that no one else does. She is also secretive, as there are things about her that she doesn’t want people to learn, and she rarely ever explains her actions to others. This makes her come across as mysterious and frightening to others. It is later on revealed that Machi is very self-conscious of her personality and tries her best to change for the better. Her difficulty stems from her past, as she has lost her own sense of identity. During her introduction, she is unsure of what she likes or what she dislikes, and even has trouble expressing her favorite color. She thinks that her existence is unnecessary in the world and that she isn't outstanding in any way. However, thanks to Yuki's influence, Machi breaks out of her shell and is slowly able to come into her own identity. She is later shown to be a very stubborn, outspoken girl with a "tsundere" personality. The only person she is violent with is her brother though, and in Yuki's presence, she can be quite flustered and rarely admits her true feelings. She once even chased Yuki all around the school just because she saw him and wanted to say hi. Despite all such things, however, Machi is a deeply kind, generous, and caring, albeit awkward, girl on the inside, as shown by her desire to help people whenever they are in trouble. In her adult years, Machi seems to have grown out of her hatred of neatness. Its mentioned that her home is clean and not filled with junk. Appearance Machi Kuragi is an average build and height teenage-girl with light fair skin and brown eyes. She has straight, light-brown hair that goes right down to the middle of her back, with two locks of hair framing her face laid on her shoulders. Additionally, she occasionally ties a small piece of her hair into a ponytail at the back. She long, slightly messy bangs that cover her entire forehead. She is often depicted in the standard Kaibara High uniform with a knee-length skirt. Fruits Basket Manga When Yuki Sohma first sees her, she had trashed the student council room. Yuki, after hearing Machi's and Kakeru shared past, promised to walk in the snow with her the next time it snowed, a promise Machi didn't think he'd keep. Over time, Yuki and Machi grew much closer to each other. When she found out that Tohru Honda was in the hospital she had brought her a bath washing kit. Yuki called her, by asking her to meet him at a certain spot. He was planning on telling her about the curse, but then his curse broke unexpectedly, so he instead told Machi that he loved her. Machi asked him if she could call him by his first name, to which Yuki consented. In the last parts of the series, Yuki gave Machi the key to the apartment he will be staying in while he attends a university. At some point, Machi married Yuki, having one son named Mutsuki Sohma between them. Mutsuki mentions that Machi and Yuki are very loving parents, and that they have a family tradition of waking up early whenever the snow would pile up, and then make trails of footprints in the snow. Thereafter, they would have breakfast together as a family. When Mutsuki entered middle school, Yuki told him about the Sohma family and its former Curse, as well as his own history as the Rat. Mutsuki then expressed how he was glad that he and Machi were his parents, that he is glad that he lives with them, and lastly that their home is the place he always wants to come home to, since it was always fun and warm. Upon hearing this, Yuki broke down in tears and Machi comforted him.21 This confirms that Machi was told about the curse too. Machi is also seen in a memory flashback as silhouettes with Yuki, Kyo, Tohru, and Hajime's unknown younger brother as Mutsuki played with Hajime when they were younger.22 As stated by Mutsuki, he lived with his parents in town until he moved from home to attend the school they attended; Kaibara High. Mutsuki mentions that even though their home is very clean now (as opposed to both Yuki and Machi's messy rooms during their teenage years), they have a "secret" that no one knows about. Mutsuki is also very messy and proudly admits that he takes after his parents in that aspect.23 Mutsuki also mentions that Machi has faced many hardships, even after so many years. He adds that her parents still tediously tells her off and that the problems surrounding her family matters will presumably not get better.24 'Fruits Basket (2019 Anime)' She makes her debut at the end of season 1. Quotes *Just leave me alone!!! *Can I call you Yuki kun? Relationships 'Her father' 'Her Mother' 'Her little brother' 'Manabe Kakeru' Since they are half-siblings, the two don't look at all alike. The two don't argue in school, but when he visits her house with Yuki, she is very hostile towards him. Kakeru sometimes uses her as an object of teasing, but usually she deals with it by threatening to strangle him. Despite his teasing nature, Kakeru cares for Machi, doing what he can to help her fit in (albeit in his own eccentric way). Machi, despite her obvious irritation with his antics, proves to be far more open with Kakeru than anyone else, with the only possible exception being Yuki. She doesn't bother to hide her annoyance with him or hesitate to hit him when he makes her mad. Kakeru, in turn, allows her to do so and never gets mad at her, even when she physically abuses him. 'Sohma Yuki' Machi is one of the few who boldly proclaimed her distaste in Yuki, or at least disagrees with the Prince Yuki Fan Club. When Yuki was not chosen as Prince for the school play, Sorta Cinderella, Machi said that Yuki did not meet the requirements to be Prince. Later in the series she becomes attracted to Yuki as he tries to understand her. 'Nakao Komaki' Machi and Komaki seem to have a fairly good relationship. When visiting her and Kakeru, Machi made a point to bring something she knew Komaki would like. Komaki also seems to be fond of Machi, affectionately calling her "Chi-chan". They also seem to relate to one another in that they are both regular victims of Kakeru's teasing. 'Todou Kimi' Kimi is likely the closest thing that Machi has to a "best friend". Unlike with Kakeru, Machi shows no signs of annoyance towards Kimi's enthusiastic personality and Kimi seems to enjoy Machi's company. Kimi is also the only person Machi seems to listen to without objection, even going so far as to follow Kimi's advice on how to get Yuki to call her by name (although Yuki stopped her before she could go through with it). It should also be noted that Kimi never brought up the rumors about Machi, possibly suggesting that she either didn't believe them, or she simply didn't care. Machi seems to have some degree of respect for Kimi, possibly due to her honest and open personality. 'Honda Tohru' She had brought her a body wash kit when she found out that Tohru was hospitalized after falling off a cliff. She also likes how Tohru is so kind and looking out for others. Knownable Relatives *'Unnamed Mother' *'Unnamed Father' (dead) *'Unnamed little brother' *'Manabe Kakeru' (Half Brother) *'Sohma Yuki' (Husband) *'Sohma Mutsuki' (Son) *'Sohma Hibika' (Niece) *'Sohma Chizuru' (Nephew) Trivia *She doesn't appear in the 2001 anime series. *Machi (with her face covered by her bangs) makes her first cameo appearance in the last two pages of Volume 7 along with Kakeru. She makes her official appearance in Volume 9 when she meets Yuki. *She is in the same class as Hatsuharu Sohma and Momiji Sohma. *Her favorite color appears to be red. Since Yuki's "color" in the student council is red, Kakeru teases Machi by saying that she likes red (as in, she likes Yuki). Likewise, Machi's "color" is yellow as stated by Ayame. *She likes the fictional anime Mogeta, and treasures the two Mogeta figurines that Yuki gifted her. Her son, Mutsuki, also inherited a love for Mogeta. He had a Mogeta plushie and a Mogeta alarm clock as a child, and now has a Mogeta keychain as a teenager. *She has a habit of lifting things up in the air, especially if she loves them. *In the 2019 anime series for the English version, her voice actress is the director of the anime series. Voice Actresses *'Japanese' : Yuki Kaida (Drama CD), Ai Kakuma (2019 anime) *'English' : Caitlin Glass (2019 anime) all information on Kuragi Machi came from http://fruitsbasket.wikia.com/wiki/Machi_Kuragi Gallery Machi-Kuragi.jpg|Machi in the manga Category:Characters Category:Females